|
James Anderson...Report from Death Row 26 years...and counting! An NBC news segment that takes less than one minute to air, "DNA exonerates 67 year old man after 26 years of wrongful imprisonment." A judge also dismisses the remaining charges against Luis Diaz, dubbed "The Bird Road Rapist." This segment was aired Aug. 5, 2005, two days after Diaz's release. Neither Fox or CBS Northern California stations aired any information about this exoneration.
The brief segment shows the sentencing judge addressing the defendant, the courtroom and the TV cameras: "If there's ever been a case more deserving of this life-plus sentence, I haven't seen it since I've been practicing law or since I've been on this bench." Diaz, a small Cuban-American who spoke little English, maintained his innocence from the date of his arrest until he was released. I couldn't help but notice that during this segment - less than 60 seconds - there were many important aspects of this case that WEREN'T MENTIONED, so I called a paralegal friend and asked him to mail me any clips he could find about this case. I received articles from the Associated Press, CNN.com, NBC6.net, Miami New Times, the Miami Herald and others, and I was shocked, disappointed and extremely frustrated to see that even AFTER this man had spent 26 YEARS in prison for crimes that he didn't commit (or have knowledge of), not ONE of those articles mentioned any of the arresting police officers' names, the prosecutor's name, the investigators' names, the judge's name. And this is AFTER THE FACT that Diaz's INNOCENCE has been proven with a 99.9 percent certainty factor! The question that entered my mind was how and why is it that in a so-called free society, and one in which you are innocent until proven guilty, that you only need be ARRESTED for suspicion of committing a crime and the media can have its way with you. You're basically tried and convicted with ink, paper and bogus information BEFORE you even have the opportunity to retain a competent attorney. If you even have the finances; in most cases, it's a matter of having a public defender assigned to your case, and more horrid and/or senseless the crime, the more sensational press you'll see. Yet even after such a horrid miscarriage of justice has been committed and exposed, those RESPONSIBLE for the miscarriage are never held ACCOUNTABLE for their actions and decisions. The arresting police officers, prosecutors, incompetent defense attorneys who often "red-line" their clients, either from lack of knowledge, laziness or favors owed to associates in the legal arena. Why is it that the local newspapers so seldom inform their public about these people. Not to mention the convictions obtained with the testimony or assistance of jailhouse snitches. But the only time you'll read about these people is in the legal newspapers, and even there you have to know what you're looking for. Then there's the so-called "jury of your peers." If 12 people convict an innocent person, aren't they a part of the process? There's also the parole boards. Aren't they a part of the judicial process as well? A parole board denied Diaz parole in 2003. Aren't they responsible and accountable for his false imprisonment since the very first parole hearing? How - and how much - do you pay for 26 years of a man's life in prison, where he was in particular danger because he had been convicted of seven counts of assault and rape (in general, those convicted of rape aren't well respected even by other convicts)? I wonder if, during his 26 years of wrongful imprisonment, Diaz ever thoughts that one of his alleged victims had a relative working at the prison where he was incarcerated. And if he did, how often? For how long? If you were a police officer in a city where one of your loved ones had bee harmed in some hideous manner, what might you do to the perpetrator if you KNEW there would be no consequences? Human nature is fragile thing, not to be underestimated. Aren't all the victims' relatives looking for "closure," which is just a pretty word for REVENGE? And nobody is above it, given the right circumstances and conditions. Diaz lost his wife, family, etc. as a result of the wrongful conviction and imprisonment. What's the acceptable amount for his loss? $100 per day? $500per day? $1000 per day? And what does a 67-year-old Cuban-American do to support himself after his release? What's the price for a man's DIGNITY? What have the "other" 160 exonerated post-conviction prisoners done since their releases, and how many have been fairly compensated, is such a thing is even possible? What happens with the remaining 400 DNA cases that are still awaiting testing in Florida alone? How many such cases are there in all the states combined? The question to ask is this: How many states in America have laws that prohibit anyone who has been wrongfully convicted and imprisoned from suing the state (and other responsible parties), even after it's been PROVEN BEYOND ANY DOUBT that the conviction and imprisonment was wrongful and illegal. With the number of wrongful convictions rising every month (and there are many that the public never hears or reads about), when are the many prisoners' organizations going to start trying to introduce bills that will change the individual state laws to allow ANY person wrongfully convicted and imprisoned to sue the state in which they were convicted? In a sense, this is "legal kidnapping," as the wrongly convicted person is being held, transported and imprisoned against his (or her) will, and that's KIDNAPPING! James P. Anderson
INTRODUCTION by Peter Rashkin Visit to San Quentin by Peter Rashkin A Case of Reasonable Doubt by Steve Argue (April 2002) SUPREME INJUSTICE by James Anderson
INTERVIEWS with JAMES ANDERSON (text and RealAudio)
|
